Box making machine



c. A. MOEI LER BOX MAKING MACHINE July 15, 1941. I

Filed Feb. 12, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 VIIIIIIIIIIIIIJ.

INVENTOl Ca. 0

ATTORNEY July 1 1941 C. A. MUELLER BOX MAKING MACHINE Filed Feb. 12, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 BY dW-LA CMQLILL ATTORNEY Patented July 15, 1941 UNITED stares PAT BOX MAKING MACHINE Carl A. Moeller, Randolph, Mass, assignor to Norfolk Paper Inc., Randolph, Mass., at corporation of Massachusetts Application February 12, 1940, Serial No. 318,479

7 Claims.

This invention relates to a box making machine.

The invention has for an object to provide a novel and improved construction of box forming machine adapted among other uses for the manufacture of paper boxes or covers of the type 1 forming the subject matter of the United States patent to M. B. Claff, No. 1,579,646, April 6, 1926, and seeks to enable the machine to produce a box or cover having square corners.

With this general object in view and such others as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in the'box forming machine and in the various structures, arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafter described and particularly defined in theclaims at the end of this specification.

In the drawings illustrating the preferred form of the invention, Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view in elevation illustrating a portion of the machine; Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of a portion of the machine shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view of one of the plunger members forming part of the mechanism shown in Fig. 1; Fig. ,4 is a plan view, and Figs. 5 to 9 are perspective views, illustrating the method of forming the box in the present 'machine; Figs. 10and11iare cross-sectional details of the front and side portions of a box or cover to be referred to, and Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the plunger shown in Fig. 3.

Inasmuch as the present invention may be embodied in either a paper box or a cover, for convenience'of description the invention will be described as embodied in-a box. The box shown in the United States patent to Claff, No.- 1,579,646, and as generally illustrated in Figs. 4 through 9, herein, comprises a body blank forming the bottom and sides of the box, and separate end pieces,

eachhaving the lower portions thereof adhesively secured to the end tabs formed upon the bottom and sides of the box, at the ends thereof. The upper portion of each end piece. is .folded. inwardly into the interior of the'box1and adhesively secured to the-inner face of the end piece and to theinner surfaces 'of the end flaps thereby forming at the ends of thebox; a-double end wall. The outer surfacesof thesides and end walls of the box maybe covered :with afinishing paper sheet, and in practice, finishingcsheets are preferably aifixed to theblanks from which the box is to be formed,:and are extended; over the edges of the sides and ends to; impart a finished appearance to the box. i

In the machine illustrated in the United State. patent to Claff and Joplin, No.-1,-'72l,431,-- formak ing paper boxes of the construction shown in.

ing the finishing paper sheets totheblank whilethe latter are in the fiat form, and for folding over the finishing sheet thus applied to finish the top edges of the side and ends. The body and end blanks having thus been formed, are then positioned between a plunger member and a pocket member, by which during the operation of the machine they are assembled in box forming 1 relation. The pocket member preferably comprises one of a series of similar members mounted upon a rotatable spider, and provision is made for completing the formation of the box while the spider is rotated to successive stations and finally the completedbox is ejected from the machine. Inasmuch as the difierent features of the present invention have to do particularly with the plunger and box-forming apparatus, it is believed unnecessary to include further description of the Claff and Joplin patent box making machine, referencebeing made to said United States Patent No. 1,721,431. For the purposes of the present invention only suflicient portions of the complete box machine have been herein'illustrated and Will be described as appear to be necessary for a complete understanding of the present invention.

In practice, during the process of forming the box, the successive steps of which are shown in Figs. 4 to 9,. a reciprocatory plunger in cooperation with a stationary formingmember functions to shape up the box and upon subsequent movement of theplunger, the end members'are engaged and the box is forced into a pocket. This movement bends the end members at right angles, as shown in Fig. 5, so that the adhesively coated surface is in contact with the outer surfaces of the end tabs or flaps of the main body blank. When the forming plunger comes to rest at the limit of its downward movement, it is arranged to expand endwise, to apply pressure against the inside of the box and set the end members firmly in position with the end flaps.

In practice, it has been found that often dur ing the above described stepv in the process oi? forming the box, the end flaps or tabs of the main body blank would not be in perfect alignment with the end members. This was due pri- I marily to the fact that because of the inherent tendency of the board to spring back to its normally flattened condition, the sides of the box would spring out slightly and consequently the attached end tabs would be raised upwardly in a slightly angular and non-parallel relation to the end members, see Fig. 19. Consequently, when the forming'plunger was'expanded and pressure applied, the end tabs would become permanently set in this irregular relationship to the end members so that when the subsequent operations of folding the end members. over the tabs were completed, the result would be an imperfect box in which the ends would be folded .over ataa slightly higher level than the sides of the box,

the corners would not be perfectly rectangular and the sides would tend to bulge or bow out- Wardly.

The present invention aims to provide box forming apparatus in which provision is made for relieving the pressure at the corners of the box during the first steps in the process of forming the box, as above described, so that the tabs will not become permanently set or bonded to the end members until the said end members have been folded over the tabs and at a succeeding station of operation. Thus the tabs are free to move and to become aligned in their proper relationship to the end members during the final steps in the process of construction of the box whereupon they are permanently set by the pressure applied at the final station of operation.

Referring now to the drawings, and as illustrated in the above mentioned Claff and Joplin United States Patent No. 1,721,431, the body blank l0, previously punched and scored as illustrated in Fig. 4, is fed into position on a table 52 under a plunger I4 and over a pocket l6 by feed rollers 5, ll. The body blank is positioned between guides I8, 20 and stops 22, 24 on the table l2 preparatory to being assembled with the end members. Simultaneously therewith, the end members 26, 28 having previously been scored, supplied with adhesive upon their upper faces by a glue roll 30 and out off to a suitablelength by a reciprocatory shear 32 cooperating with a stationary shearing member 34, are carried forward into position over the ends of the pocket and beneath the body blank by a transfer mechanism indicated generally at 35. After the separate members of the box have been positioned as above described, the plunger or forming block Hi descends forcing the blanks into the pocket it to form the box.

In order to shape up the body blank It} before entering the pocket it, the blank is first passed through a forming mechanism indicated generally at All. When the block descends it engages that portion of the blank from which the bottom of the box is to be formed and as it passes through the forming mechanism the sides and ends of the box are turned up at right angles to the bottom as shown in Fig. 5. Upon continued downward movement of the block 14, the end members 28, 28 which are held by the transfer mechanisms 36 in a position overhanging the ends of the pocket with their glued faces uppermost, are engaged and a portion thereof is folded into the pocket at right angles to their original position and against the ends of the pocketwith their glued faces against the tabs 42, 44 and end section 45 on the body blank, as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 6.

In practice, it has been found necessary to make the inside of the pocket slightly wider than the actual width of the finished box, in order that the partially formed box might have sufficient clearance to enter the pocket as it is being forced downwardly into the latter. Experience has demonstrated that when the pocket was made too narrow, the side members 46, 48 were apt to be sheared off or substantially weakened during this step in the formation of the box. However, in practice, this slight difference in width between the pocket and the box permits the box to assume a shape such as illustrated in an exaggerated form in Fig. 10, because of the tendency of the board to spring back to its normally flattened condition.

After the plunger comes to rest in its down-- ward position, as illustrated in Fig. 2, the ends 50, 52 of the plunger are caused to expand in order to press the end members 26, 23 firmly into contact with the ends of the body blank, as fully described and illustrated in the United States Patent to Claif and Joplin, hereinbefore referred to.

From the description thus far it will be seen that when a plunger of the type shown in the prior art is employed which is provided with end surfaces engageable with the entire width of the box, the end tabs 42, 44 will be permanently set in their irregularly aligned position when the plunger is expanded, as shown in Fig. 10. However, in accordance with the present invention, 7

provision is made for relieving the pressure against the end tabs 42, 43 during this operation and, as herein shown, the end members 50, 52 of the plunger are provided with depressed portions 54, 56 at the corners thereof which are of sufficient length and depth so as to avoid contact with the end tabs 42, 44 when the plunger is expanded to apply pressure. In this manner, the end blanks 26, 2B are firmly secured to the end sections 45 on the body blank and the end tabs 42, 44 are left free so that they may be moved into alignment with the end members during subsequent operations, as will now be described.

After the above described operations are performed, the transferring mechanism 36 releases its hold upon the end members and moves back to its starting position whereupon the pocket is ready to be advanced to its next station of operation. When the end members are released they will tend to spring upwardly until they are in a substantially vertical position as illustrated in Fig. 7. As the spider 60 rotates the upper portions of the end blanks are engaged by fixed folding plates 62 which fold them down from the position shown in Fig. 7 to the position shown in Fig. 8 and retain them in this position until the pocket carrying the partially completed box arrives at a position in line with a reciprocatory block 64 mounted to move horizontally into the pocket. The block 64, which is also of the expansible type, is provided with end portions engageable with the entire width of the box. After the pocket comes to rest and upon movement of the plunger 64 into the pocket, the block engages the free ends of the end members 25, 28 and folds them inwardly into the box, see Fig. 9, with their glued surfaces against the inside of the tabs 42, 44 and end section 45 of the body blank.

It wil be observed that, as soon as the upper portions of the end members 26, 28 are folded over at right angles as shown in Fig. 8, the end tabs 42, 44 will tend to be rocked inwardly into alignment with the folded over portion and being free to move will assume their rectangular position in alignment with their adjacent end members. Thereafter, when the plunger 64 operates to fold the end members inwardly into the box, as above described, the tabs 42, 44 will be forced into their proper position and upon subsequent endwise expansion of the block 54, as described in the Claif et al. Patent No. 1,721',431 above referred to, the tabs 42, 44 will be firmly pressed into contact with the end members 26, 28 thus completing the formation of the box.

Upon subsequent movement of the spider 60, the pocket arrives at the station indicated generally at 65, where the completed box may be ejected from the pocket onto an outgoing conveyer 68, as shown in Fig. 1.

From the above description it will be observed that the construction of the box making machine of the present invention is such as to entirely eliminate the difii'culties previously encountered in box making machines of the Claff type, particularly in the production of a shallow box or cover, and enabling a box with square corners and of parallel construction to be produced.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been herein illustrated and described in connection with apparatus particularly designed for use in the Clafi and Joplin box making machine, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other forms within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. In a box making machine, in combination, mechanism for assembling a body blank provided with corner and end fastening flaps and separately formed end blanks, including a box shaped pocket and a plunger insertable into the pocket to force the blanks therein, said plunger having expansible end members for pressing the end blanks and body blanks together, said end members being of a width such as to engage only portions between and not including the corner fastening flaps whereby to prevent adhesion of said corner flaps to said end blanks during said pressing operation and to leave said corner flaps free to be moved into alignment with said end blanks during subsequent forming operations.

2. In a box making machine, in combination,

a box shaped pocket, a plunger for introducing a plurality of blanks into the pocket, and means for pressing together said blanks after they have been introduced into the pocket, said pressing means comprising expansible end members having cut out corner portions constructed and arranged to press only those portions intermediate the corners of the box whereby to prevent adhesion of the corner portions of the blanks during the pressing operation and to leave said corner portions free to be moved into alignment during subsequent forming operations.

3. In a box making machine, in combination, a spider provided with a plurality of pockets, means for assembling a body blank provided with corner and end fastening flaps and separately formed end blanks in a pocket, and for operating sortable into the pocket to force the blanks therein, said plunger having provision for pressing the end blanks and body blanks together while en.- tirely avoiding pressure at the corners of said end blanks whereby said corner fastening flaps may be free to move with relation to said end blanks and into alignment therewith when the latter are folded inwardly, and means for thereafter pressing said entire end portions including said corners. V

5. In a box making machine, in combination, a spider provided with a plurality of pockets,

means for assembling separately formed end blanks and a body blank provided with corner and end fastening flaps, and for operating on the blankswhile in the pocket to complete the formation of the box, said means including a reciprocal plunger insertable into the pocket at one station in the rotation of the spider, said plunger having provision for pressing the end blanks and said end fastening flaps together and having depressed portions to entirely avoid pressure at the corners of said body blank to permit the corner fastening flaps to be free to move with relation to said end blanks, means for thereafter folding the upper portion of said end blanks inwardly at right angles during the rotation of said pocket, said end blanks engaging the normally extended portions of said corner flaps to move them into alignment with said end blanks during such folding operation, and a second plunger insertable into the pocket at another station having provision for forcing the upper portion of said end blanks into the interior of the box and for thereafter pressing the entire end portion including said corner flaps into contact with said end blanks.

6. In a box making machine of the character described, in combination, mechanismv for assembling a body blank provided with corner and end fastening flaps, with separately formed end blanks, including a box shaped pocket and an exon the blanks while in the pocket to complete I the formation of the box, said means including a reciprocal plunger insertable into the pocket at one station in the rotation of the spider, said plunger having expansible end members for pressing the end blanks and body blanks together at those portions intermediate the corners whereby to permit said corner flaps to be entirely free to move with relation to said end blanks, a second plunger insertable into the pocket at another station to securely press the entire end portion of said body blank into contact with said end blanks, after said end blanks have been folded into alignment with said corner flaps. V

4. In a box making machine, in combination, means for assembling separately formed end blanks and a body blank provided with corner and end fastening flaps, said means including a box shaped pocket and a reciprocal plunger inpansible plunger insertable into the pocket to force the blanks therein, and into partially assembled relation, saidplunger having end members engageable with portions intermediate and not including said'corner fastening flaps whereby the latter may be entirely free to move relative to said'end blanksand into alignment therewith when the latter are folded inwardly into completely assembled relation, and a second expansible plunger insertable into the pocket at another station of operation, said second plunger having end members engageable with the entire end portions of the completely assembled box to securely press said blanks together.

7. In a box making machine adapted for the V CARL A. MOELLER. 

